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‘Eccentric golfer’ Heo In-hoe becomes a father… 20 under par, 5 wins overall

‘Eccentric golfer’ Heo In-hoe (36), who receives support from many fans for his unique fashion and unstoppable play, recorded his 5th win in the Korea Professional Golf Association (KPGA) Korean Tour.

On the last day of the Korean Tour iMBank Open (total prize money of 500 million won) held at Pami Hills Country Club (par 71) in Chilgok, Gyeongsangbuk-do on the 24th, Heo In-hoe made 9 birdies without bogey and recorded 9 under par 62 strokes. Heo In-hoe recorded a total of 20 under par 264 strokes, beating second place Lee Jeong-hwan (32) by 4 strokes, and lifted the championship cup two years after the 2021 GS Caltex Maekyung Open. The winning prize is 100 million won.

Heo In-hoe, who started the 4th round with a joint lead, briefly allowed the joint lead to Lee Jung-hwan, who was in hot pursuit by reducing 9 strokes until the 13th hole, but widened the gap again by catching 3 consecutive birdies in holes 13 to 15, and then won the 17th hole (par). 4) He sealed the victory with a birdie.토토사이트

He was once called a variety of nicknames, including ‘lazy genius’, ‘four-dimensional golfer’, and ‘cheeky’. He was once criticized for revealing in a public interview that he entered the competition without practicing at all.

Heo In-hoe, who publicly proposed to his wife, who served as his caddy, on the golf course and married him in 2016, became a father last February. Heo In-hoe said, “As the head of a family, I want to live responsibly while continuing to play games that entertain the fans.”

Huang Ze, who bowed his head after being eliminated early, said, “I felt like I was lacking a lot”

Lim Do-heon-ho’s setter Hwang Taek-ui (Army Athletic Corps), who was confirmed to be eliminated early even before the opening ceremony of the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games, bowed his head in defeat.

Korea, led by coach Lim Do-heon, defeated Pakistan with a set score of 0-3 (19-25 22-25 21-25) in the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games men’s volleyball round of 12 match held at the China Textile City Sports Center Gymnasium in Shaoxing, Zhejiang, China on the 22nd. lost.

After suffering a shock 2-3 loss to India in the first game of the group stage, Korea beat Cambodia 3-0 in the second game and barely made it to the round of 12, but was unable to overcome Pakistan and suffered the humiliation of being eliminated.메이저사이트

It has been 61 years since men’s volleyball won no medal at the Asian Games since the 1962 Jakarta Games (5th place).

Hwang Taek-ui was full of motivation, having been selected as captain ahead of the tournament, but he lowered his head at the loss that day.

After the game, he bit his lip and said, “I felt like I was lacking a lot. The national team should have performed better in international competitions, but there are a lot of things that need to be improved.”

Korea, which failed to win a medal early on, was now pushed to the 7th-12th place match. It is an unexpected and disastrous result.

Hwang Taek-eui sighed, “The first game (against India) was a bit disappointing, and although we won yesterday’s game (against Cambodia), I didn’t think the game was good. I think the men’s volleyball team was lacking overall.”

Yang tied for first day lead at PGA Champions…9 shots off the pace

“Major King” Yong Yang, 51, is tied for the lead on the first day of the U.S. Professional Golf (PGA) Tour’s Champions, a tournament with a strong Korean connection.

After the first round of the Pure Insurance Championship at the par-72 Spyglass Hill Course in Pebble Beach, California, USA, on Wednesday (July 23), Yang carded six birdies and a double bogey to shoot 4-under par and share the lead with eight other players, including Brian Gay and Dickie Pride (USA). With nine players in the lead, the competition for the title will be fierce over the next two days.

Yang Yong-eun was unfortunate to make a double bogey at the last. Starting on the 10th hole, Yang Yong-eun was six strokes off the lead through the back seven holes, but on the difficult eighth hole (par-4), she dropped her tee shot and her third shot ended up in a bunker next to the green. Yang ended the first round tied for the lead after dropping two strokes.토토사이트

Yang, who became the first Asian to win a men’s golf major when he defeated “Golf Emperor” Tiger Woods at the 2009 PGA Championship, made his debut on the Senior Tour last year after turning 50. He has yet to win a tournament, but he finished runner-up at last year’s Ascension Charity Classic and has six top-10 finishes this season. At this season’s Ascension Charity Classic, which concluded on Nov. 11, he tied for third place, his best finish of the season, while setting the tournament course record.

If Yang Yong-eun continues her strong play over the next two days and wins, she will become the second South Korean to win the senior event, joining Choi Kyung-joo. Choi became the first South Korean to win the event in 2021.

Choi, who will be looking to defend her title, had two birdies and four bogeys on the day and finished the first day of competition in a tie for 55th place alongside Wee Chang-soo.

The second round of the tournament, which will see three Korean players attempt to win the title at the stunning coastal Pebble Beach, will be broadcast live on JTBC Golf & Sports starting at 7 a.m. on Thursday.

‘Conquering the 20 home run mark in 5 years’ Hanwha Chae Eun-seong, first solo shot against LG Lim Chan-gyu… Recently hit 3 home runs in 4G

Hanwha Eagles Chae Eun-seong (33) hit 20 home runs in the season against his home team.

Chae Eun-seong started as the third hitter and first baseman in the away game against the LG Twins in the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League held at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul on the 23rd.

In the top of the first inning, Hanwha’s leadoff hitter Lee Jin-young got on base with a hit on the first pitch, but the next batter, Choi In-ho, retired with a double play on the first pitch, and the atmosphere calmed down. Chae Eun-seong, who appeared in a situation where there were no runners on second base, hit two fouls against LG starting pitcher Lim Chan-gyu and was forced into an unfavorable ball count of 0-2.스포츠토토

Chae Eun-seong turned the bat without hesitation when Lim Chan-gyu’s third pitch, a 144 km/h fastball, flew toward the high course near him. The powerful hit led to a preemptive solo shot with a distance of 115 meters that went over the left wall.

Following the match against SSG Landers (No. 18) on the 19th and the KIA Tigers (No. 19) on the 21st, Chae Eun-seong hit 3 home runs in the last 4 games, conquering the 20 home run mark for the season. This is his second career 20 home run in 5 years after hitting 25 home runs during his time at LG in 2018. With this home run, Chae Eun-seong tied for third place in the league home run category along with Park Dong-won and Austin (LG).

Meanwhile, Hanwha allowed starting pitcher Ricardo Sanchez to give up two runs in the bottom of the first inning after Chae Eun-seong’s go-ahead solo shot, allowing the team to immediately turn things around, and is currently trailing LG with a score of 1-2 in the third inning.

‘66.7%’ highest nomination rate since 2016… 1st choice Moon Jeong-hyun, Samsung surprisingly named Jo Jun-hee 4th choice

Things went as expected, but then there was a surprising surprise.

The 2023 KBL Rookie Player Draft was held at Jamsil Student Gymnasium in Seoul at 3 p.m. on the 21st.

Of the 30 applicants, 20 were called up by professional teams. All 10 teams nominated until the 2nd round, and gave up their nominations from the 3rd round.

The nomination rate was 66.7%. This is the highest figure since 2016 (68,4%). The selected players can immediately participate in the KBL Cup competition, which begins in Gunsan on October 8th.

Moon Jeong-hyun, Park Moo-bin, and Yoo Yu-sang, who were called the Big 3 of this draft, took the 1st to 3rd positions without any surprise.

Moon Jeong-hyeon (22), a 194cm forward, was selected for the adult national team despite being a college student. She is the youngest member of the basketball team going to the Hangzhou Asian Games and wears the Taegeuk symbol.

She has no rivals on the college stage. Although he is short for a forward, he has good strength and good basketball sense.

He has an outstanding presence in many areas, including defense, rebounding, scoring through penetration, and passing. Among the players in this draft, many people said that Moon Jeong-hyun was the one with immediate power.

However, he has a weakness in outside shooting. Therefore, some voices predict that, unlike in college, there will be limitations in the professional world.

KT has completed the national team lineup. During the next season, Heo Hoon, who is at Sangmu, will be discharged from the military.

Last summer, Moon Seong-gon was recruited from the free agent (FA) market. There is also Ha Yoon-gi, a rapidly growing national team center. These are all current and former national team players.

With the addition of Moon Jeong-hyun, KT has the power to aim for the championship starting this season.

When asked about his thoughts on first place, Moon Jeong-hyun said, “I am grateful to the KT officials and coach Song Young-jin who nominated me. There will be no one happier than me today (21st). I will change my happiness to KT’s ability to win in the future.” He said.

Second place was Korea University guard Park Moo-bin (22, 187cm). Wearing Ulsan Hyundai Mobis uniform.

Park Moo-bin is a guard who is good at both coordinating the game and scoring goals. He has attracted attention for his long shooting distance since his days at Hongdae.

He is a guard with strong offensive tendencies. Park Moo-bin said, “He will become a player who will somehow contribute to the heyday of Hyundai Mobis.”메이저사이트

Changwon LG, which had the third-place pick, chose Yonsei University shooting guard Yoo Yu-sang (22, 188 cm). Yugi-sang is considered the best shooter on the college stage. He also has good defense, so his value rose right before the draft.

Yoo Yoo-sang said, “I am grateful to coach Cho Sang-hyun and club officials for selecting me for LG, the team I wanted to join.”

Seoul Samsung made a surprise nomination at 4th place. When Samsung coach Eun Hee-seok called Jo Jun-hee (19, 187 cm), the Jamsil Student Gymnasium was filled with exclamations. It was a high nomination that no one expected.

Jo Jun-hee participated in this draft as an ordinary person. He studied basketball in Canada and the United States. He is a graduate of the Renaissance Acatemigos, Cerritos University.

His potential is plentiful, but so much remains unproven. However, at the draft combine, he ranked first overall in vertical jump (91cm), and his value increased as he performed well at the tryout.

Next, Daegu Korea Gas Corporation ranked 5th with Shin Joo-young, 6th ranked with Jeonju KCC’s Joo-young Lee, 7th ranked with Wonju DB’s Park Seung-jae, 8th ranked with Goyang Sono’s Park Jong-ha, 9th ranked with Seoul SK’s Lee Gyeong-do, and 10th ranked with Anyang Jeong Kwan-jang. Na Seong-ho was selected.

Samsung received attention by selecting Kim Geun-hyun, who appeared as an ordinary person in the second round. Samsung coach Eun Hee-seok said, “I have no regrets about today’s selection.”

Look forward to golden shots… Confidence in power as the ‘strongest of all time’

In golf, which became an official sport at the 1982 New Delhi Asian Games, a total of 36 gold medals have been won, with Korea winning 13 of them. At the 2006 Doha and 2010 Guangzhou Games, they swept all four gold medals in the men’s and women’s individual and team events.

However, Korean golf only achieved ‘no gold’ at the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Asian Games. I had to be satisfied with two silver medals and one bronze medal. It has been 20 years since the 1998 Bangkok Games that Korea failed to win a gold medal at the Asian Games. This is why Korean golf is trying to regain its reputation at the Hangzhou Asian Games, which opens on the 23rd.》

Men’s golf challenge for gold for the first time in 13 years

There are big changes in golf at the Hangzhou Asian Games. Until the last tournament, only amateur players for both men and women were allowed to participate, but from this tournament, professional golfers are also allowed to participate. The number of amateur and professional players is determined by country.

In Korea, Kim Si-woo (28) and Im Seong-jae (25), who are active on the PGA Tour, joined the men’s national team. The two players won tickets to Hangzhou in April last year as top ranked players in the world. As the tournament was postponed for a year due to the novel coronavirus infection (Corona 19), there were opinions that a new national team member should be selected, but the Korea Golf Association decided to keep the list as is after going through the reinforcement committee.

Kim Si-woo, with a total of 4 wins on the PGA Tour, and Lim Seong-jae, with 2 wins, are world-class players in name and reality. The two players also stepped on the stage of the Tour Championship, where only the top 30 players participate in last season’s PGA Tour FedEx Cup. ‘Eldest brother’ Siwoo Kim tasted victory at the Sony Open this January. In January 2021, he kissed the trophy two years after the American Express competition.

Seongjae Lim, who was the first Asian player to win PGA Tour Rookie of the Year in the 2018-2019 season, is strong on the big stage. He tied for second place in the 2020 Masters, recording the best performance by a Korean player ever. Although he has not yet won a championship this season, he has successfully entered the top 10 a total of 9 times. Since his debut season, he has been invited to the Tour Championship for five consecutive years, surpassing Tank Choi Gyeong-ju (4 times) and setting the record for the most appearances by a Korean player.

The Korean men’s national team, with the two players joining, is evaluated as ‘the strongest ever’. Kim Si-woo and Lim Seong-jae, who were unable to win a medal at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, are determined to continue the men’s golf gold streak that was lost 13 years ago in Hangzhou after the 2010 Guangzhou Games. If the two win a gold medal and receive military service benefits, they are expected to gain wings in their tour activities.

The momentum of the amateur brothers is also good. Jo Woo-young (22) and Jang Yu-bin (21) won the Korea Professional Golf (KPGA) Korean Tour tournament this year, beating the pros each. Wooyoung Jo stood at the top at the Golfzon Open in April and Yubin Jang at the Gunsan CC Open in August. It has been 10 years since 2013 that an amateur player combined for two wins on the Korean Tour. In particular, he is improving his practical sense by consistently participating in tour events as an invited player ahead of the tournament. In the case of men’s golf team competitions, the scores of the top three out of four players in each round are added together to determine the rankings, making it important for players to perform evenly.토토사이트

India and Thailand are considered competitors for men’s golf medals. For India, the main players are Anirban Lahiri (36) and Shubhankar Sharma (27), who each won two wins in the DP World Tour (formerly the European Tour), and for Thailand, Pachara Kongwatmai (24), who finished runner-up in this year’s Shinhan Donghae Open after an overtime, is the main player. It is considered as The golf game is played at Westlake International Golf Course, and the fairway is not narrow and is evaluated to be good overall.

Women’s golf must overcome China’s Yin Luoning, ranked first in the world

The women’s national team’s ‘high school three musketeers’ Hyeon-jo Yoo (18), Ji-yu Lim (18), and Min-sol Kim (17) wore the Taegeuk symbol. The three-member women’s national team was originally planned to consist of one professional and two amateurs, but as no suitable applicants came from the pros, the team was formed with amateur players. In the women’s team event, the scores of the top two out of three players in each round are added together.

The youngest member, Kim Min-sol, is attracting attention. Kim Min-sol, who won the Songam Cup Amateur Championship last year, drew attention by breaking through her professional players and tying for fourth place at the Korea Women’s Open in June. She also tied for 5th at the OK Financial Group Shotman Open on the Korea Ladies Professional Golf (KLPGA) Tour, which ended on the 17th.

In the case of women’s golf, host country China is expected to be strong. In particular, Yin Luoning (21), ranked first in the women’s golf world rankings, will participate. Luoning Yin, who won her first win at the LPGA Tour’s Dio Implant LA Open in March this year, is once again on top at her major tournament, the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship in June, making her mark on the world. announced. In the world rankings announced on the 12th of this month, she ranked first, becoming the second top-ranked Chinese player after Feng Shanshan. In addition, Lin Siyu (27), ranked 12th in the world, also submitted a vote. It is expected that the advantage of the home course will be actively utilized. In addition, the performance of countries such as Taiwan and Thailand is also worth noting. The Korean golf team heads to Hangzhou, the decisive battle site, on the 25th, three days before the start of the match.

From back-up for 10,000 years to becoming a starting player → to becoming a replacement for a genius hitter and joining the national team… 163cm outfielder’s life turns around, becoming hope for second-tier players 

What kind of year will 2023 be for Samsung Lions outfielder Kim Seong-yoon (24)? Wouldn’t it be an unforgettable year in his baseball life?

On the 21st, the Korea Baseball Softball Association (KBSA) Performance Improvement Committee and the KBO Power Strengthening Committee replaced two of the 24 members of the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games baseball team who were injured or in the recovery stage from injuries but judged to have difficulty showing normal performance during the tournament. Confirmed.

One of those two is Kiwoom Heroes batter Lee Jeong-hoo. As soon as the second half of the season started, Lee Jeong-hoo suffered an injury and was put on the operating table and was out for the season. The departure of Lee Jeong-hoo, the KBO’s best hitter and one with extensive experience in international competitions, is bound to be painful for Ryu Joong-il, who is aiming for his fourth consecutive gold medal.


Even so, I couldn’t help but select him as a replacement. Someone had to replace Lee Jeong-hoo and be named to the national team. The names of young outfielders such as Samsung Lions’ Kim Hyun-jun and Lotte Giants’ Yoon Dong-hee and Kim Min-seok were mentioned.

However, none of them were named to the national team. The player named on their behalf is Kim Seong-yoon, a 163cm outfielder from Samsung.

Kim Seong-yoon, who graduated from Wondong Middle School and Pohang Jecheol High School and joined Samsung with the 39th pick in the 4th round of the 17th round, was a backup player who mainly played as a defender and pinch runner until this season. He had played in just 110 professional games as of last season.스포츠토토

Even last season, when he played the most games since his professional debut, he was not a player who made a significant presence with 8 hits, 2 RBIs, and 14 runs in 48 games.

But his season this season is different. In fact, he was just like that until the first half of the season. As always, he came out primarily as a pinch runner and substitute. He appeared in 52 games, but only had a batting average of .217 with 15 hits, 7 RBI, and 11 runs scored.

However, in the second half of the year, Kim Seong-yoon completely changed. In 45 games, he has a batting average of .352 with 57 hits, 2 home runs, 20 RBI, and 27 runs scored. Looking at his performance in the second half of the year, his performance is worthy of being selected as a member of the national team. He is second in the league in stolen bases in the second half, sixth in most hits, and seventh in batting average.


He has clearly established himself as Samsung’s starting outfielder by showing base-running play using his quick feet, a wide defensive range that allows him to see all three outfield positions, and excellent contact ability. Now, he is listed among Samsung’s starting outfield lineup along with Koo Ja-wook, Kim Hyun-jun, and Jose Pirella. Thanks to this, Koo Ja-wook and Pirella were able to manage their stamina and gain time to focus on batting in the designated hitter position.

The baseball of Kim Seong-yoon, who made the leap from backup to starting player in his later years, and was even selected to the national team.

Previously, Samsung coach Park Jin-man said, “Kim Seong-yoon is performing well. Future Team players will also think about this. He will think, ‘If we show that well, we can earn a place in the first team.’ Seongyoon Kim is giving hope. “He is doing a good job of motivating me.”

Kim Seong-yoon’s performance is enough to give new hope to the players playing in the second team.

Let’s look forward to Kim Seong-yoon’s performance under the Hangzhou sky wearing the national team uniform.

Meanwhile, along with Lee Jeong-hoo, NC Dinos pitcher Koo Chang-mo was also excluded from the entry. He recently recovered from an injury and made an appearance for the Futures and was named to the first team, but was ultimately left out as it was judged that he was not in perfect condition. Left-hander Kim Young-gyu from the same team will go to the Asian Games in place of Koo Chang-mo.

Kangin has wings… let’s go! towards the gold medal

French pro Soccer League 1 Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) had a tug-of-war with the Korea Football Association over the selection of ‘soccer genius’ Lee Kang-in (22) to the Hangzhou Asian Games. Coach Hwang Seon-hong of the men’s national soccer team, who is aiming for a third straight Asian Games title, was desperate for ‘ace’ Lee Kang-in to join him early, but PSG also hoped that ‘freshman’ Lee Kang-in, who joined this summer, would fully recover from the injury suffered last month and contribute even a little to the team’s strength before leaving. I hoped for. This problem was resolved when PSG decided to invite Lee Kang-in to the national team after playing the first leg of the important 2023-2024 UEFA Champions League (UCL) group stage. The reason they ‘pushed’ over Lee Kang-in is because his talent is outstanding.

About 10 minutes was enough for Lee Kang-in, who returned from injury after about a month, to show his presence. Lee Kang-in appeared as a substitute in the first match against Borussia Dortmund (Germany) in the UCL group stage, Group F, held at Parc des Princes in Paris, France on the 20th, and showed off his brilliant moves, contributing to the team’s 2-0 win. Lee Kang-in now heads to Hangzhou, China to hunt for the Asian Games gold medal.

Lee Kang-in, who focused on rehabilitation after a left thigh injury on the 22nd of last month, was substituted for left midfielder Vitinya in the 34th minute of the second half when the team was ahead 2-0. Although it was a short period of time, Lee Kang-in showed off his unique ability to break pressure and his attacking instincts through sharp forward passes. In the 37th minute of the second half, in a counterattack situation, he received a pass with an exquisite turn and delivered the ball to Kylian Mbappe. In addition, he showed off his individual skills by beating the opposing defender during a counterattack in the 45th minute of the second half, and also showed off a fantastic heel pass in extra time in the second half.토토사이트

Lee Kang-in, who showed good condition on the UCL stage, will now arrive in China on the afternoon of the 21st and join the Asian Games national team.

Lee Kang-in’s joining is like adding wings to Hwang Seon-hong, who has a good atmosphere. The national team began its journey toward its third consecutive Asian Games title by defeating Kuwait 9-0 in the first game of the group stage held the previous day. Jung Woo-young (24, Stuttgart) made a great performance with a hat trick, and in addition, Jo Young-wook (24, Gimcheon Sangmu) scored multiple goals, Eom Won-sang (24, Ulsan), Park Jae-yong (23, Jeonbuk) and Ahn Jae-jun (22, scored one goal each). Bucheon) and Baek Seung-ho (26, Jeonbuk) all scored goals to improve their condition. With the addition of Lee Kang-in, the national team’s momentum is expected to skyrocket. Lee Kang-in is expected to appear in the final group match against Bahrain on the 24th at the earliest.

Lee Jae-ik (24, Seoul E-Land), who was with Lee Kang-in in the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup runner-up, said, “I happen to be sharing a room with Kang-in. “He is already telling me not to take away his bed,” he said. “When Kangin comes, the synergy effect becomes even greater. “I know how big he is to our team,” he said, expressing his expectations. Choi Jun (24, Busan), a fellow U-20 World Cup member, also welcomed Kang-in, saying, “I think we can do better because Kangin is a player who can adapt to everything we need.”

Korea, which is at the top of Group E with 3 points, can secure an early advance to the round of 16 with 2 wins if it wins against Thailand on the 21st.

Milwaukee Mejia takes banned substances again… Severe disciplinary action, suspended for 162 games

Major League Baseball (MLB) Milwaukee Brewers pitcher JC Mejia (27) was suspended for 162 games for taking banned substances.

The MLB Secretariat announced on the 21st (Korean time) that Mejia was suspended for 162 games for taking a banned substance.토토사이트

In Mejia’s doping test, stanozolol, a performance-enhancing substance, was detected. He became the first player in the major leagues this season to be disciplined for using a banned substance.

This is not the first time Mejia has taken banned substances. He previously tested positive for stanozolol in May 2022 and was suspended for 80 games.

Mejia, who became a big leaguer in 2021, appeared in a total of 28 major league games and recorded 2 wins, 7 losses, and an ERA of 8.32. He appeared in 9 games this season and recorded 1 win and an ERA of 5.56.

Mejia, who was placed on the injured list last month due to shoulder pain, was moved to the 60-day injured list last week.

With this severe punishment, the day when Mejia will step onto the major league stage again is far away.

Lost 299 times… Seong Min-gyu’s process, is it the best so far?

Since the appointment of general manager Sung Min-gyu (41), Lotte’s 300th loss is just around the corner.

Lotte lost 3-6 to Kiwoom in a professional baseball Sajik home game on the 19th.

Meanwhile, since September 3, 2019, when General Manager Seong was first appointed, Lotte has played a total of 574 games, recording 262 wins, 13 draws, and 299 losses (a winning percentage of 0.467).

For reference, Lotte’s record in 574 games just before the appointment of General Manager Seong was 263 wins, 7 draws, and 304 losses (winning percentage of 0.464).

So, there was virtually no change in Lotte’s performance before and after Director Seong took office.

A winning rate of 0.003 higher means that you can win 3 more times out of 1,000 games.
Lotte announced on July 9, 2019 that coach Sang-moon Yang and general manager Yoon-won Lee decided to resign from the team at the same time.

56 days later, General Manager Seong was appointed and apologized, saying, “I am extremely sorry for showing a disappointing performance in front of the fans due to repeated poor performance and performance below expectations.”

At the same time, he emphasized, “We can no longer repeat the same mistakes, and we will innovate the team at a rapid pace in line with a clear direction and strategy.”

However, even after the appointment of General Manager Seong, Lotte did not change much from the ‘Lotte that baseball fans originally knew’.

Sapporo Dome, Japan, where the opening match of the 2015 World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Premier 12 was held. Photo source: Samurai Japan website
So what did ‘Lotte that baseball fans originally knew’ look like?

It was during the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Premier 12 in November 2015.

I arrived in Sapporo, Japan, where the opening match of the tournament was being held, and on my way to the city, I ran into a Lotte official on the airport railroad.

This official, who has now left the team, politely asked for his opinion, ‘How should we recruit pitchers in the free agent (FA) market?’

Despite investing 3.8 billion won, Yoon Gil-hyun left an ERA of 5.96 during the three years he played for Lotte. Donga Ilbo DB
“Recruiting Jung Woo-ram (38, currently Hanwha) will actually help the team, but wouldn’t Lotte sign Seung-rak Son (41, current KIA Futures League coach) and Gil-hyeon Yoon (40, retired) and say, ‘We did this much?’ “I replied.

The result is exactly as you know.

Since 2013, when NC began participating in professional baseball as the 9th club, until the opening of the 2019 season, before the appointment of General Manager Seong, Lotte spent a total of 61.3 billion won in the free agent market.

The amount is 4.65 billion won more than Hanwha (56.65 billion won), which ranked second during the same period.

Song Jeong-gyu, former Lotte general manager. Donga Ilbo DB
Why is Lotte spending money so recklessly?

This time, former Lotte general manager Song Jeong-gyu (70), who was jointly interviewed by Channel A’s ‘Shorttory’ in the summer of 2019 when Lotte was in a slump, may give a hint.

Former general manager Song was originally a ‘madoros’ = captain and was a person who had a long way from baseball.

Then, in 1990, at his own expense, he published a book called ‘Winning V Strategy Lotte Giants: TOP SECRET’ and eventually took responsibility for Lotte’s household from the following year.

It was former general manager Song who gave Lotte its last Korean Series championship (1992).

Song Jeong-gyu, former Lotte general manager. YouTube screen capture
Former Director Song said, “Lotte cannot spend money when it should and continues to save it. “To put it bluntly, it’s just crawling on its own,” he said.

“Then the results dropped and the fans said, ‘Lotte, step down. “Only after saying, ‘We will create a civic team,’ did they report to the authorities, ‘Public sentiment in Busan is not good,’” he said.

He continues, “Then the owner asks, ‘Why didn’t you tell me? ‘Spend money’, they say. “Only then will we be able to allocate 20 to 30 billion won at a time,” he explained.

He then pointed out, “That’s why we can’t spend money at the right time.”

In 2019, Lotte coach Yang Sang-moon became the first player in professional baseball history to resign midway through his first season. Donga Ilbo DB
Lotte spent 10.183 billion won in annual salary for its players in 2019, excluding rookies and foreign players.

Among the 10 professional baseball teams, Lotte is the only team that spends more than 10 billion won on player salaries.

Even then, the team’s performance was the lowest with 48 wins, 3 draws, and 93 losses (winning percentage of 0.340).

Lotte reduced the 2021 player salary scale to 5.22 billion won.

2021 is the year in which Director Seong promised to “give a chance.”

Of course, the season result was 8th place with 65 wins, 8 draws, and 71 losses (winning percentage of 0.478).

2020 Sports Donga article conveying General Manager Seong Min-gyu’s goals
Still, it is an unmistakable fact that Director Seong changed the structure of Lotte from ‘a team that spends a lot of money and does not do well’ to ‘a team that spends a lot of money and does not do well’.

Director Seong continued to emphasize, “Now is not the time to spend money.”

This means, paradoxically, that it is the owner’s turn to say, ‘Spend money.’

Lotte Giants Co., Ltd. increased capital by 19 billion won last year, and Manager Seong spent a lot of money during the Stove League.

Lotte spent a total of 30.8 billion won during last year’s Stove League, including signing catcher Yoo Kang-nam (31) as a free agent for 8 billion won.

Kang Min-ho qualified as a free agent (FA) after the 2017 season and signed with Samsung. Provided by Samsung
In fact, it is no exaggeration to say that the first task given to General Manager Seong at Lotte was to ‘find a good catcher.’

This is because Lotte was having a hard time finding a starting catcher after Kang Min-ho (38) left for Samsung ahead of the 2018 season.

After the 2019 season ended, Kim Tae-gun (34, currently KIA) and Lee Ji-young (37, currently Kiwoom) were released on the free agent market, but General Manager Seong said, “I decided that there was no better catcher than the one I wanted. “I’ll show you how to recruit him,” he shouted.

And the player acquired through trade was Ji-wan Ji (29, former name Seong-jun Ji).

Director Seong Min-gyu’s ‘No. 1 recruit’ player Ji-wan Ji. Kim Min-seong, Sports Donga Reporter marineboy@donga.com
According to Sports2I, the official statistics company of the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO), Ji-Wan Ji-wan has recorded a win contribution (WAR) compared to replacement player of 0.99 from 2020, when he joined Lotte, to the present.

During the same period, Taegun Kim had a WAR of 3.06 and Jiyoung Lee had a WAR of 1.80.

With both of these players giving up, Lotte started with Na Won-tak (29) in 2018, followed by Ahn Jung-yeol (28, current NC) in 2019, Jeong Bo-geun (24) in 2020, and Kim Jun-tae (29, current KT) in 2021. In 2018, the catcher for the opening game was changed to Ji-wan Ji (29).

Lotte is, of course, the first team in the history of professional baseball to change players who had no experience as starters in the opening game every year and appoint them as starters on the first day of the season.

Min-gyu Seong, general manager of Lotte. YouTube screen capture
Still, Ji-Wan Ji-Wan is one of the players that General Manager Sung traded well.

No, he could be said to be the only good player brought in.

The remaining eight players that General Manager Seong acquired through trades only managed a combined WAR of 0163.

Conversely, the total WAR of players who left Lotte through trade is 7.19.

The WAR of the player who left was 45 times higher.
Of course, there is no guarantee that a player who was traded would have done this much if he had remained at Lotte.

This is because, in a sense, it is natural for people to change when the environment changes.

And before General Manager Sung, Lotte was not a team that was extremely good at trading.

Even so, it is undoubtedly true that General Manager Seong did not have fun with the trade.

Oh Yoon-seok and Son A-seop, who once worked together at Lotte. Provided by NC
Director Seong also lost Son Ah-seop (35), a franchise star, to NC in the 2022 free agent market.

Afterwards, General Manager Seong said, “If we combine Kim Jae-yu’s (31) performance against right-handed pitchers, Chu Jae-hyeon (24)’s performance against underhand pitchers, and Shin Yong-soo’s (27, Shin Yun-hu after name change) performance against left-handed pitchers, we can replace Son Ah-seop.” He said.

Son Ah-seop’s OPS (on-base percentage + slugging power) by type of opposing pitcher from last year to this year was △right-handed 0.731 △underhand 0.968 △left-handed 0.783.

The batting records of the three players during the same period are omitted out of concern for the mental health of fans.바카라사이트

The 0.500 fence that has never been surpassed.
There are only two cases when you set up a process and proceed with something, but fail to achieve success.

Either things weren’t done according to the process, or there were problems with the process from the beginning.

If the work was not done according to the process, you can look into where and how the hole was created and hold the person responsible for causing the problem accountable.

If there was a problem with the process from the beginning, you can consider what the problem was and reinvent the process.

Lotte general manager Seong Min-gyu is making a funny expression. YouTube screen capture
In a professional baseball team, the general manager’s job is to establish a process and check whether work is being carried out according to that process.

In other words, this is not a position where you get paid to imitate General Manager Baek Seung-soo from ‘Stove League’, which began airing on SBS in 2019.

It has been 1,480 days since Director Seong received his salary from Lotte.

Is Director Seong’s process heading toward the conclusion Lotte fans want?